Vista, Rootkits Headline Hacker Confab

Black Hat Briefings: Microsoft plans to showcase Vista as its "most secure operating system ever," but independent researchers worry that the hacker powwow is being reduced to a glorified product demo.

For Microsoft, the coming days of Black Hat Briefings hacker scrutiny in Las Vegas could make or break its claim that Windows Vista is the "most secure operating system ever."

The software maker will use the August 2-3 security conference to showcase a wide range of security features and functionality being fitted into the successor to Windows XP.

But even as the Redmond, Wash., company's hype machine swings into high gear, independent researchers worry that the venerable hacker powwow is being reduced to a glorified product demo for a rich sponsor.

"You're not going to learn much from a Microsoft talk. They're basically there to do a Vista demo and tell the IT guy that they've made it harder to break," said Marc Maiffret, chief hacking officer at eEye Digital Security, in Aliso Viejo, Calif.

For Maiffret and other Black Hat Briefings veterans, the inclusion of Microsoft on the agendaan entire day of tracks dedicated to Vista securitydilutes a conference known for the controversial release of zero-day exploits and hacking tools, discussions on novel software cracking techniques and lively debates on flaw disclosure, privacy, defense mechanisms and industry trends.

"It'll be interesting to see how far Microsoft will go to market Vista, but I don't think anyone's going there to listen to Microsoft talk about how great a job they did," Maiffret said in an interview with eWEEK.